Distributed Interactive Graphics Applications in Computational Fluid Dynamics

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Abstract
Implementation of two distributed graphics pro grams used in computational fluid dynamics is discussed. Both programs are interactive in na ture. They run on a CRAY-2 supercomputer and use a Silicon Graphics Iris workstation as the front-end machine. The hardware and supporting software are from the Numerical Aerodynamic Simulation project The supercomputer does all numerically intensive work and the workstation, as the front-end machine, allows the user to perform real-time interactive transformations on the displayed data. The first program was written as a distributed program that computes particle traces for fluid flow solutions existing on the su percomputer. The second is an older post-pro cessing and plotting program modified to run in a distributed mode. Both programs have realized a large increase in speed over that obtained using a single machine. By using these pro grams, one can learn quickly about complex features of a three-dimensional flow field. Some color results are presented.